Outcomes
CR B10.2 View, interpret, and report on ideas and information from more than one source to develop and support positions on various topics related to the course including identity, social responsibility, and personal agency.
CC B10.2 Create and present a visual or multimedia presentation supporting a prepared talk on a researched issue, using either digital or other presentation tools
Digital Continuum Skills
Evaluate and discuss case studies and video vignettes that foster building healthy relationships in
a digital world including cyberbullying, sexting and homophobia.
ELA B10 Course Themes
Equity and Ethics
How this lesson fits with ELA B10
As the lives of students have gone online, so have many of the problems that are present in the real world. In 2019, 1 in 4 Canadian students between the ages of 12 and 17 reported being victims of cyberbullying (Statistics Canada, 2023). Just as with the traditional form of bullying that came first, cyberbullying is a major issue that needs to be addressed by all stakeholders in children’s’ lives, including educators.
In ELA B10, students are asked to look at questions of equity and ethics. Part of equity and ethics is making sure that all members of a society can feel like they are safe to express themselves as they see fit, but this may not be possible to happen if someone fears that they are at risk for harassment because of how they wish to express themselves. This includes online. Although this lesson comes the Grade 11 curriculum with Common Sense Education, these questions fit best with the ELA B10 curriculum because of its emphasis on right and wrong, and how one’s actions can affect the lives of others.
Students in ELA B10 should be able to explore how cyberbullying affects their lives and the lives of their fellow students. Along with this, students should then be empowered to challenge cyberbullying and to provide strategies for their fellow students to combat cyberbullying and to be ready to see it around them.
Overview of the Lesson
As with all Common Sense Education lessons, there are slides and a worksheet to go along with the lesson. They can be adapted to best fit needs.
The lesson begins with a brief video about Netflix star Millie Bobby Brown, who left Twitter after being subject to harassment on the platform. Students are asked to think about what could have motivated this reaction from Brown, but also from the people who harassed her. What could have made them go after her? Why did they feel they could do this?
Students will then watch a video from PBS Digital Studios called “Is the Internet Making Us Meaner?” The video presents students with interesting ideas about why people can feel more free to be cruel, or to overshare online, because of a concept called the “online disinhibition effect.” The basic idea of this effect is when online the voice inside people’s heads that can tell them not to share something is turned off (PBS Digital Studios, 2019). However, the video also points out that this effect is not always bad, as it can also lead people to reach out to others for support online, and for other people to give them that support (PBS Digital Studios, 2019). This is because there are two types of disinhibition: toxic and benign. Toxic disinhibition can create a harmful environment online characterised by harsh rhetoric, while benign presents a more pleasant and welcoming atmosphere online. Students will also go through the causes of disinhibition: anonymity, lag time, and a lack of non-verbal cues. All of these can have positive of negative effects on online communication.
Students are then given a pair of situations where people are targeted online. One is a celebrity, and the other is a regular teenager. Students will need to discuss how the three causes of disinhibition could have lead to the targeting, and will also need to suggest a way to counter the disinhibition.
How to Extend the Lesson
Presenting the scenarios is a great start to ending off the lesson, but this can also be extended further by giving students to take part in a form of a role play for one of the situations.
Students could choose one of the two situations and act it out. As they are going through, they could present ways that the factors of disinhibition played a factor in the targeting, and what can be done to stop something like this from happening again.
This could be extended further by having students film their role plays to be turned into vignettes to use with other classes around the school to teach about disinhibition and its effects.
Additional Resources
Cyberbullying: Online bullying affects both victims and bullies- This video from CBC Kids News gives a nice primer on cyberbullying to set a good definition for a class. It is a little below Grade 10 level, but it could still be used to reintroduce the concept and get students ready to talk about it.
References
CBC Kids News. (2022). Cyberbullying: Online bullying affects both victims and bullies [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFsI5ZTe3ro.
Couros, A. & Hildebandt, K. (2015). Digital Citizenship Education in Saskatchewan Schools. Saskatchewan Ministry of Education. file:///Users/jordanhalkyard/Downloads/83322-DC_Guide_-_ENGLISH_2%20(5).pdf.
Common Sense Education. (2019, August). Online Disinhibition and Cyberbullying. https://www.commonsense.org/education/digital-citizenship/lesson/online-disinhibition-and-cyberbullying.
PBS Learning Media. (2019, August). Is the Internet Making You Meaner? | Above the Noise [Video]. Public Broadcast Service.https://www.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/internet-making-you-meaner-above-the-noise/internet-making-you-meaner-above-the-noise/.
Saskatchewan Ministry of Education. (2011). Saskatchewan Curriculum: English Language Arts 10. https://curriculum.gov.sk.ca/CurriculumHome?id=37.
Statistics Canada. (2023, Feb. 21). Cyberbullying among youth in Canada. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-627-m/11-627-m2023017-eng.htm.
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